Running
by thatonegirlswords
Summary: A string of bad luck and a dysfunctional family lead Harper to Hawaii. Unfortunately, she is closely followed by the men she is running from. Five-0 comes to the rescue. Rated T just in case. Steve/OC.
1. Chapter 1

Harper took a deep breath of thick Hawaiian air as soon as she stepped out of her two-star motel room. As miserable as the heat and humidity could be at times, she much preferred it to the constantly air-conditioned room. She checked her watch… 7:30. Plenty of time to make it into town before the sun set. Harper tossed her long, dark hair over one shoulder, hoisted her large tote bag onto the other, blew her bangs out of her eyes and headed off down the street towards downtown Honolulu.

The streets were full, as they always were on the weekend. Harper was grateful for the cover that the constant hoard of tourists always provided. It had been two weeks since she arrived on the island, and, with no sign of trouble, she was almost starting to feel comfortable there… safe even.

'Don't get too far ahead of yourself,' she muttered to herself as she squeezed out of the crowd and into a small but tightly packed café and bar boasting 'The Most Hawaiian Burger' and 'Open Mic Night'. She sat down at a small table that barely held the two place settings that rested on it. When a server stopped by, she ordered a basket of fries and two beers; one for 'the friend she was meeting here'.

'You're sure they're the same guys, Danny?' Steve McGarrett asked his partner.

'Do I look like I have bad eyesight to you? You're always questioning me.' Detective Danny Williams replied.

'It was just a question.'

'Well here's your answer. Yes, Steve, I am sure it's the same guys. I spent a year of my life trying to put them behind bars. I think I remember what they look like.'

'And you couldn't because…' Kono Kalekaua piped in.

'The same reason we usually can't lock people up. Lack. Of. Evidence." Danny practically spelled out to his team. 'They're good at clean-up, that's for sure.'

The Five-O team had been sent footage from the airport's security tapes of a couple of suspicious characters who had arrived earlier that day.

'Thankfully, HPD has been tracking them since this morning when they left the airport.' Chin Ho Kelly said as he pulled up a map of all the places they had been including a certain shrimp truck and a dump motel.

'What do you think they're here for Danny?' Steve asked.

'They're mafia hit men. Someone pissed them off and tried to run. Now they're here to get their boss' money or kill the person who doesn't have it.' Danny answered. 'Or they're just on a nice tropical vacation.'

'It looks like they've stopped in downtown. Danny, you're with me. Kono, Chin, you guys keep an eye on them here and be ready if things go bad.' Steve ordered his team as he headed out the door.

'Mafia. In Hawaii. Who would've thought? I feel like I'm back in Jersey again.' Danny said as he got in the passenger side of his Camaro.

The pair drove the short trip in silence until they reached the parking lot that the hitmen's car was parked in. There was no sign of them. Danny began to get out of the car.

'Whoa, whoa, whoa.' Steve stopped him. 'Don't you think that if they see you, they'll know something is up? Sit back down. You're staying here unless I need you.'

'Fine. Sometimes I think you like to save all the fun stuff for yourself.'

'That's because I do.' Steve grinned and shut the door. There were only a few places that were still open on the street. Steve quickly ruled out a couple of quiet, romantic-looking restaurants, and headed into the loud bar that seemed to be overflowing with people. All of which appeared to be tourists. When he got in the door he was met with the horrible sound of a tone-deaf rendition of John Mayer's 'Your Body Is A Wonderland'. It didn't take long for him to spot his targets. One, Jack is what Danny called him, was sitting at the bar with an untouched beer in his hand. The other, Lou, was standing against the wall holding his own untouched drink. They were both staring in the same direction. Steve followed their gaze to a small table against the wall where a young girl stared at the stage and nibbled at some French fries.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N- Thank you so much to everyone who subscribed to my story. I've been writing stories almost as long as I can remember, but this is the first time I've had the guts to publish anything. I hope I can keep you all interested with the rest of the story. Thoughts and reviews are welcome .

Harper loved live music. Even bad live music. The acoustic guitar made her sleepy though and she kept biting her lip to keep herself from yawning. The server approached her table, 'Is that friend of yours still on their way?' he asked for the third time.

Harper was mid eye-roll when a tall, dark-haired man slid into the open seat. 'Sorry I'm late. Thanks for saving my spot.' He said and flashed an undeniably charming smile at her. Harper looked at him suspiciously. He gestured for her to lean forward over the table as he did the same. She sighed and did as he asked.

'Look like you're enjoying this,' he whispered in her ear. 'My name is Lieutenant Steve McGarrett. I'm with HPD. Do you have any idea why a couple of members of a New Jersey mafia would be here staring you down?'

'Shit,' Harper met his eyes for just a moment as all the color drained from her face.

'I'll take that as a yes. What's your name?' Steve asked.

'Kirsten.' Harper answered.

'Ok Kirsten, here's the plan. You're going to finish your beer and we're going to walk out of here like we're very happy together alright?'

'I want to see your badge as soon as we get out that door.' Harper said through her forced smile.

'It's a deal. Now drink up.' Harper did as she was told. When she finished her beer, Steve put a $20 bill on the table. Harper grabbed her bag and stood up just in time to have Steve's arm lock around her shoulders. Steve couldn't help but notice that the mafia men weren't the only ones staring as she walked by. He wondered if it had more to do with her striking features and surprising height or the fact that they were the only two in the joint who weren't wearing any form of Hawaiian print. As soon as they were outside, Harper shook free of his arm and looked at him expectantly. When he had put a few more paces between them and the bar, Steve lifted the hem of his shirt to reveal the badge that was fastened to his pants.

'Satisfied?' he asked.

'For now,' Harper answered.

'How much do you know about these guys? Will they follow us?' Steve asked.

'Probably not tonight. They'll want to figure out who you are and what kind of threat you are to their plans,' Harper told him and bit her lip as if considering how to word her next statement. 'I should be safe with you.'

Danny was leaning against the car when they got back to the parking lot. 'Steven,' he said. 'Picking up a date for the evening is not what we were here for.'

'Danny, you're always jealous of me. You can go find your own because I think this one's too tall for you,' Steve replied. Harper stood with her mouth slightly open, amazed that the people who were supposedly here to help her were bickering like an old married couple.

'Ha ha. Very funny. No really, what's with the girl?'

'This is who your Italian buddies are after.'

'For some reason I find it hard to believe that this sweet young lady could have possibly upset those men enough for them to chase her all the way out here. I have seen the people that these guys go after, and then have never looked anything like her.' Danny stated knowingly.

Both men looked towards Harper, sizing her up. No doubt imagining what she might have done to get on the mafia's bad side.

'Shouldn't we go somewhere else… somewhere farther away from them before we start discussing this?' Harper asked.

'The girl has a point.' Danny said and climbed in the small backseat of his beloved car.

'The girl also has a name.' Steve said as he and Harper got in the car. 'Danny this is Kirsten. Kirsten, this is my charming partner Danny.' She turned around in her seat and gave Danny a small smile in acknowledgement.

Steve's phone rang. 'Yeah?' he answered one and a half rings in.

'Hey Boss. What's going on?' Kono asked.

'We have the target. We're on our way back to headquarters. You and Chin go ahead and head home. Danny and I will make sure she's safe for the night and we'll pick this back up first thing in the morning.'

''She' huh? Interesting. Are you sure? We can stick around.'

'Yeah. It's late. You guys should get some sleep,' Steve assured her.

'Alright. See you in the morning then.'

Steve hung up the phone.

'Thank you for volunteering me for this overnight protection shift, but I was supposed to pick up my darling daughter an hour and a half ago. So if you really need me, I'm going to have to let Rachel know.' Danny said.

'That would have been a great thing for you to tell me earlier Danny. That's fine. She can stay at my house for the night. Where were you staying Kirsten?' Steve addressed Harper for the first time since getting in the car. Her arms were crossed and her hands balled into fists. Her eyes were slightly red and looked like they might overflow with tears at any moment. 'Hey,' he said, 'You'll be ok. We'll get rid of these guys.'

Harper nodded and took a deep breath. 'I was staying at a dump motel on the other side of town, but I checked out before I left tonight.'

'This bag is all you have?' Steve eyeballed the bag that took up most of the passenger side floor.

'I travel light,' Harper answered and looked out the window.

They pulled up to the Five-O headquarters. Harper followed Steve's example as he got out of the car and made his way to a large pickup truck. She had climbed into the passenger side when Danny yelled, 'McGarrett! A word?'

Steve closed the driver's side door and headed back to the Camaro to see what his partner had to say this time.

'Are you sure this is a good idea? Do you realize who the kind of people are who piss off the mafia? They're not good people. And you're just going to let her into your house? I know you think you're invincible, but, man, you can be so stupid. You don't know anything about her.' Danny ranted.

'Danny, do you really think she could have done something that bad? Look at her.' Both men turned to look at the profile of the girl in the truck. 'I'm going to talk to her tonight. Figure out what's going on. And I can take care of myself thank you very much.'

'Okay… but if you don't show up in the morning, I'm going to hunt her down.'

'Say hi to Gracie for me,' Steve said and headed back to the truck.

'Will do.' Danny grinned. 'No funny business McGarrett,' he said and his gaze flickered over in Harper's direction. 'See you in the morning.' Danny got in his car and sped away.

Harper was relieved when Steve got in the drivers seat and headed down the road, putting even more space between them and downtown Honolulu.

'Thanks for helping me. I don't think I would have made it out of there on my own. But there is something I should probably tell you,' Harper paused. Steve glanced at her. 'My name isn't really Kirsten,' she said and reached up to the top of her head, pulling off her dark wig. 'I'm Harper. Harper Cameron. Sorry for lying to you and your partner,' Harper looked down at her hands knotted together in her lap.

'Clearly you do what you have to to survive,' Steve answered, surprisingly unphased.

'How did you know?'

'It was just a hunch… and it was what I would have done,' a hint of a smile flashed across his face.

'Hmmm… Looks like I need to work on my disguises a little. Are you sure they won't be able to find us at your house? The last thing I want to do is bring them here,' Harper asked.

'You'll be safe here for now. I've got pretty good security, and like you said, they won't come after you until they size me up,' Steve said as he pulled the truck into his driveway. He grabbed her bag from her lap and headed in the house. Harper followed closely.

Once inside, Steve headed straight for a large chair in the living room. Harper took in the room. It looked like a man lived there. It was comfortable with its worn brown leather furniture, and slightly Hawaiian with it's palm curtains and beach pictures hung on the walls. There was an acoustic guitar resting on a stand in the corner. She had to suppress her urge to grin when she noticed it.

'Take a seat, Harper.' Steve gestured to the couch next to him. 'You know I have to ask you what's going on before you get to comfortable here, don't you?'

'Yeah. I know.' Harper sat down and looked at her hands folded in her lap. 'I don't even know where to begin… I guess it started when I was in high school. We were living in Pennsylvania. My dad had been self-employed most of my life, selling insurance or anything else he could get his hands on. I think he was always disappointed that I didn't get the salesperson gene from him. Anyway, he decided to invest in some rental properties. Within a year, he had somehow bought five houses without putting any money down. I don't know… it always seemed like a scam to me. And my poor mom, she never wanted any of it. So, of course, a few years later, I was out of high school and the housing market dropped. All of the houses were worth a fraction of what my parents owed on them. It made my dad sick, literally. I remember him puking in his bathroom for a week. Then there were more scams. There were banks calling and collection agencies and people coming into our driveway and taking pictures of our house. Finally my dad found someone to help us. This man had it all planned out. We would sign the houses over to him and he would deal with the mortgage companies. Then he would give the houses back so my dad could sell them and give him a cut. It seemed simple enough until my dad wanted to keep one of the properties. That's when Jack and Lou showed up. They talked to my dad. Gave him a deadline and threatened my mom's life. That's when I left. I packed up everything I cared about and took off in the night. The only person I told was my mom. I asked her to come with me but she said she had to stay and support my dad's decisions. Less than a week later she died in a car explosion.' Harper covered her face with her hands so she didn't notice the shocked expression that crossed Steve's face. When she took her hands away, her eyes were red. She sniffled once before finishing. 'I've been running ever since. My older brother left too. Last I heard he was using a different name and was living a peaceful life in Austin, Texas. I don't know where my dad is, but I'm assuming he's still alive or they wouldn't still be after me.'

'Wow.' Steve said trying to mentally fill in the blanks in her story. Where had she stopped? Had she tried to get help before? 'I still don't understand why they're after you.'

'I think just so they have something to threaten my dad with. They caught up with me once… I got away but not before they got something from my dad.'

'You said they caught up with you? Can you tell me what happened?' Steve asked.

Harper looked him in the eye, pleading to be let off the hook for now. 'I don't know if I'm ready to talk about it quite yet. But I can tell you that it will piss them off that I'm here with you. Especially if they figure out who you are. They said if I ever told the police, they'd kill me and the rest of my family. You're sure they can't get to me here?'

'If they do, I'll know long before they get close enough to hurt you.' Steve answered. Harper looked so tired and so drained. He wondered if she'd ever had the chance to tell her story to anyone else. 'I think that's probably enough for tonight. Come on, I'll show you your room.'

He grabbed her bag again and led the way up the stairs, stopping at the second door. It was a small room, definitely more feminine than the rest of the house, but cozy. 'It was my sister's room. She lives on the mainland now,' he said and dropped her bag on the bed.

'Thank you. It's perfect,' Harper told him. Steve turned to leave the room. 'Steve?' he turned around to face her. 'Is it alright if I take a shower?'

'Of course. This first bathroom doesn't always get hot water, so you can use mine. There are towels under the sink,' he paused and thought for a moment. 'You're not going to try to run or anything if I leave you alone, are you?'

Harper sighed. 'No. Not tonight. I promise.' Steve nodded and headed back down the stairs.

Once back in the living room, he turned on the TV as background noise and picked up the book he'd been trying to find time to finish for weeks. He could hear the shower turn on above his head. A handful of pages and a full half-hour of TV later, Steve realized that he had no idea what he had just read. He'd been too distracted by the thoughts running through his mind. The shower was still running, and he entertained the thought of going upstairs to check on Harper just long enough to hear the water shut off. He focused his attention back to the TV. A reality show was on and he let himself get sucked into the storyline of the episode. A few minutes later, Harper appeared on the stairs. He took in her appearance for the first time since the bar. Her long legs poked out of a pair of small boxer shorts, and she was wearing a threadbare tshirt that was only slightly too big for her. Her dark blonde hair was still damp and hung inches past her shoulders. Finally, his eyes rested on her face. She was a pretty girl, but stress had taken a toll on her complexion. With the makeup washed away, it was impossible not to notice the dark circles under her bright blue eyes.

'Is it alright if I join you?' Harper asked when she reached the bottom of the stairs.

Steve answered by clearing the other end of the couch. 'You were in the shower so long that I thought you might have broken your promise,' he said, smiling.

'Sorry. It's just been so long since I got to really shower. I feel so helpless in the shower, so I keep them to a minimum,' Harper said as she settled in to the couch. She curled up in a ball, resting her head on the arm of the couch, hugged a pillow tightly to her chest, and stretched her legs out until her toes were just barely touching Steve's thigh.

'What exactly are your thoughts on sleep?' he asked softly.

'Pretty much the same,' Harper answered and yawned as if on cue.

The two sat in silence for the duration of the show. Steve looked at Harper. Her eyes were closed and her breathing steady. He grabbed a blanket and carefully draped it around her. He tried to be as quiet as possible as he turned off the TV and gathered his shoes and book to bring to his room, but the second he stood up, he heard her gasp.

'You're leaving…' she whispered. Steve couldn't tell if it was a question or not.

'Just going to bed.'

'Oh. I'll go too then.'

When they reached the door to Harper's room, Steve turned to her, 'Do you think you'll be able to sleep?' he asked.

Harper waved her hand like he shouldn't worry. 'I'll be fine,' she answered. She gave him a quick smile and closed the door.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Thanks for being patient and continuing to subscribe! My writing time is super limited, and I'm having a hell of a time getting this story where I want it to go. Hopefully, I'll work out the kinks soon .

It was light out when Harper opened her eyes. She grabbed the book that she had been reading when she finally dozed off and attempted to bend the cover back to it's original position. It was a long night of fighting off sheer exhaustion out of the fear of not only what could possibly be lurking around the neighborhood trying to find her, but also what might be waiting for her in her dreams. Thankfully, Steve's sister had left a random assortment of books in her room to keep Harper distracted. She stepped out of bed and walked over to the window. She almost couldn't believe that what she saw outside was real. It looked like a postcard and for a moment, she wished she had someone back home to send a picture of this to. The palm trees in the backyard formed the perfect frame for the white sand beach and bright blue ocean. A knock on the door brought Harper back to reality.

'Um…' she quickly ran her hands over her hair in an attempt to smooth it down. 'Come in.'

Steve peeked his head in the room. 'Oh good. You're up. Do you think you can be ready in about a half an hour?' he asked.

Harper nodded. She quickly got dressed, put a little mascara on, threw her hair into a ponytail and topped off her look with a baseball cap. She and her bag were down the stairs in 20 minutes.

'That's quite the view you have,' she said to Steve who was sitting at the table drinking coffee and reading that morning's paper.

He smiled. 'I'm spoiled by it. Can I pour you some coffee?'

'No, thank you. I'm not much of a fan,' Harper answered, eyeballing the bowl of pineapple and strawberries on the counter.

'Help yourself.'

'Pineapple is my favorite. I remember my mom cutting them up for us when I was little. I would eat it until the acid started burning my mouth. Then I would keep eating.' She closed her eyes for a moment as she popped a chunk into her mouth.

'So how long were you up last night?' Steve asked. Harper looked at him like she had no idea what he was talking about. 'Your light was on all night,' he explained.

'Oh. I slept a little. It's not a big deal… I think my body is used to running on just an hour or two.'

'I'm sure it is.' Steve didn't even try to mask his sarcasm. 'We should get going.'

Harper grabbed a handful of fruit before following Steve out the door. Once in the truck, she slouched down in her seat, pulling her hat down over her face more, her hands clenched tightly into fists.

'You're going to be ok…' Steve said. 'They'd have to be stupid to come after you in broad daylight when you're with me.'

'Like I haven't heard that one before,' Harper muttered.

The rest of the drive to the 5-0 headquarters was made in silence. Their arrival was met with a flurry of activity. Introductions were made and questions were asked. Chin got back to his paperwork and Danny pulled Steve aside, leaving Kono to make small talk with Harper.

'I know last night you didn't have much of a choice but to let her stay at your house, but are you sure you can trust her? The mob doesn't go after people who haven't done anything to deserve it,' Danny said in a quiet voice.

'Danny, she didn't do anything,' Steve started and quickly filled his partner in on all that he had learned the night before.

Danny thought for a moment before responding to what he just heard. 'Okay. I believe her for now, but, Steve, just be prepared for this to turn out differently than it seems. And you're going to have to get her to tell you the story of what happened when they caught her. It could tell us a lot about what they want from her.'

Steve looked around the headquarters and saw that Kono had gone back to her desk. He could see Harper through the glass door to his office sitting on the couch with her feet tucked under her as she flipped through a book. He nodded his head at his partner and headed to his office. Harper glanced up at him briefly when he opened the door, but quickly went back to the book she was looking at. Steve sat down on the couch with her. He looked at what she was reading… it was a book about World War 2. Her brow furrowed as she concentrated on the story of Pearl Harbor, her fingers tracing the outline of a picture of the Arizona.

'My grandpa is still down there,' Steve said snapping her out of her concentration. She narrowed her eyes at him… hoping that he was joking.

'He must have been a very brave man. I bet you're a lot like him.'

Steve opened his mouth to respond when his door opened. 'Boss, there's been a homicide. It looks like it's drug ring related,' Chin announced. Steve immediately jumped from his seat and headed out the door. He stopped at the door, remembering that there was someone else in need of his help, and turned around.

'Danny will stay here with you. We'll be back soon,' he told Harper who nodded in acknowledgement.

He turned around only to face Danny who was standing in his own doorway with his eyebrows raised. 'You're putting me on babysitting duty? Really?' Steve gave him a sympathetic look and continued walking out the front door. 'You owe me,' Danny called after him.


End file.
